Shinobi of the Ashes
by PurgedMemories
Summary: War, war never changes. Niether does the destruction that follows in its wake and the lives it forever alters. Complete A/U with full ensemble cast.
1. Armageddon

**Disclaimer: Author expresses lack of ownership of the copyrighted ideas portrayed in this piece of literature, written for no monetary gain.**

This is gonna feature gore, cursing and horror elements, thus the M rating.

**Shinobi of the Ashes**

**I**

War, war never changes. At the dawn of the twenty-second century, divine fire consumed the majority of mankind's existence in a purge of righteous fury.

No one knows for sure who fired the first inter continental ballistic missile, whether it was the People's Republic of China, seeking desperately to ease the injustice done to its suffering people, the United States pre-emptively attempting to prevent another example of the Sino-American War or the Soviets, tired of the patronization of their new found "friends" to the west and a stagnating economy. Or perhaps it was some radical religious organization, fed up with the standardization of the world culture and seeking to pull the plug and reset humanity's progress.

Though the source was unknown, the effects in the end were the same.

The almost complete removal of the human race from the face of the earth.

Only those that had managed to reach the shelter of underground had any chance of survival. Scattered across the world, people survived where they could, the fortunate in giant self-contained and sustaining biomes called Vaults, created just for the purpose of protecting these last dregs of humanity from their self-imposed extinction.

Others were condemned to dwell in the mighty Redoubts, the last remnants of a collapsing world order, bent on preserving their power and purpose past their own designed demise. Massive constructs they were, filled to the brim with the accumulated secrets and almost mystical technologies of the last four thousand years of human thought. Meant to exist as the bases from which the armies of the old would arm themselves, issue forth and conquer the new, many fell to their own corruption and insanity, descending into the very pits of hell and in many cases adding their own horrors to the chaos and madness of the outside world.

The not so lucky souls sentenced to endure more primitive forms of survival and much like their ancient progenitors sought shelter in caves, subways and basements. Exposed to biologically altering radiation, some of them, along with the majority of the planets surviving flora and fauna were mutated into cruel parodies of their former selves, monsters unrecognizable within the span of a few short generations.

As the years passed and the radiation began to die down, the first of the untouched human survivors began to emerge from hiding and slowly but surely a crude, brutal societal norm was established. Lawlessness and violence was the rule of life and soon the tides of blood began to nourish the ruined wastelands and give life to the rise of a new human condition. It was in these times that the first major settlements began to form and soon after the rise of new factions that would shape the future of these cursed lands, scrabbling out a meager existence among the blasted ruins and barren irradiated landscapes.

Throughout this all, the menacing doors of the Vaults remained closed, their precious stores contained inside, protected from the external horrors and chaos that had gripped the land. Many sought entrance to these imposing facilities and in time their true purpose faded to legend and legend turned to myth, then myth faded, lost to the dark.

While inside life continued to continue on.

It was here that children were born, here that they would live and in time where they would die.

The great steel door of Vault 113 shook the very mountainside, as for the first time in nearly three hundred years rumbled open.

* * *

The Sage of the Six, paths watched as the last of his people passed him by, heading deeper into the mountain's shadow and the darkened valley that lay beyond. Satisfied that all had arrived, yet disappointed that there were so few, the Supreme Kage motioned for his personal guards to accompany him, their ceremonial white animal masks bobbing behind him as they silently followed. Soon enough he was in sight of the end of his journey, the massive armored doors that had haunted his dreams for the past few months, arriving just before the sky fire had, the cataclysmic Armageddon that had reduced most of the Elemental Country's to a barren wasteland. It was only through his prophecy that he had managed to save the few he had led here, though far too many had been lost to the flames.

It had all started to suddenly, the giant pillars of fire that had landed in the Land of Lightning and the Land of Earth. Thousands had died in the blast, but the true horror had yet to come.

From what the horrified survivors had managed to tell him, most had not died from the first firestorms but from the creeping invisible death that had accompanied it. Nobody understood what caused the sickness, horrible burns and welts, followed by total organ failure and death. Crops sickened and died and animals gave birth to mewling horrors or keeled over dead. Sometimes it would be preceded by a burning rain or a massive dust storm of ash, though some laughably claimed it was spread by something as simple of the wind.

Whatever this sickness was, it spared none, cutting down nins of all levels of skills and indiscriminately butchering old and young alike. Panic had taken over and the countries had erupted into total war, forgoing alliances and slaughtering friends and foes alike. It seemed as though it was the end of days and the death of hope itself.

Or at least until _he _had appeared. Rikudo Sennin, formerly the leader of a little village in the Land of Fire, brought it back. Wherever he walked people followed and as he traveled the countryside, he collected the shattered remnants of the once proud ninja clans and brought them under his banner.

It was said he was divinely blessed, always avoiding the areas cursed by the invisible death and foreseeing any possible ambush well before it happened. Thus he was elevated to the pedestal of near god-hood.

After a few years of traveling he was blessed with a vision, of a place where the future of the Ninja could be secured. It lay far beyond any known borders, outside the veil of thick mist that brought ships to port around the elemental countries and separated it from the outside world.

So the great exodus had begun, as the Sage and his followers had boarded hundreds of ships of all sizes, using any sort of transport they could find and left the familiar shores of their dying homeland far behind in the mystic mist.

Hundreds had perished during the voyage lost to the sea and the elements, while hundreds more had died of starvation and cabin fever induced violence.

But Rikudo Sennin did not give up hope, even when it looked to be lost. For in his hidden sight he saw the final destination of their sacred pilgrimage, an abandoned place of unknown power and sciences, abandoned by its creators who had left for unknown reasons.

At long last they had reached that foreign shore, rocky and desolate, black coarse stones crunching under their feet as they made haste away from the burning wrecks that had been their homes for countless months.

The Sage had said their would be no turning back.

That had been four days ago and their numbers had even farther dwindled as they lost even more good shinobi to deadly fatigue.

Now for the first time the Sage's pure light purple eyes set on his people's promised salvation.

The portal was massive, larger than any door he had ever seen. It was more heavily armored as well. Strange that it had been left open and unguarded, but he was not about to question his good luck and the benevolence of Kami himself.

With slight awe he stepped inside the promised land and into the dark maze within.

Their paradise was in bad shape.

The complex was a smallish labyrinthine maze of tunnels that wound their way under the blackened mountain. The interior was dark and the ninja were forced to forge ahead using torches to light the way. Once again the Sage made his way to the front of the column as the exodus continued, moving without thought deeper into the tunnels.

The first hint of trouble came when a sharp scream issued from the rear of the group and Rikudo raced to find the source. What he found though shocked and confused him.

There were metal creatures attacking his people and had already left several brave nin lying broken on the ground. The metal men, for that is all he could guess them to be, shot condensed fire out from their outstretched arms, killing adults and children alike as thrown kunai and shuriken bounced off their hardened bodies and katanas and ninjatou bent and warped.

The sage could feel the fear and panic start to grow, for them to come this far and be betrayed by their salvation at the last-minute was heart wrenching. Strong men who had fought and killed all their lives ran at the sight of the metal beast and soon the God of Shinobi found himself alone in the corridor, facing down his people's inhuman executioners.

A strange calm came over him and he reached deep into the powerful reserves and simply created destruction. His purplish eyes became rippled like a stone thrown in a pool. His Rinnegan, the reason he was known as the God of Shinobi.

Fire and electricity leaped from his outstretched hands, melting the blasted creatures and turning them into smoking piles of rubbish. Those not destroyed outright were disabled by the shocking electrical discharge and soon there was none left standing.

He felt his chakra, the energy he had himself discovered powered and coursed through every living thing in existence. He had found a way to harness this energy, utilizing the unique power of his eyes to bend the very elements to his will. He was known as a supreme sorcerer, utterly destroying the great demon king Bjuuji. Furthermore he was convinced that his people could learn to use this awesome power, if only someone was able to teach them...

The threat for now ended, the exodites continued on downwards. The Sage acted as a rear guard and pathfinder, directing his people down the correct series of passages. Finally they reached their destination and with no more attacks Rikudo made his way back up to the front and inspected the barrier that blocked their passage.

Another door, though this one much smaller than the colossal behemoth out front. Although this one was also different, being locked and bolted with no key or latch to open it.

"Father what is this?" his blonde haired, blue eyed son Hiro asked, running his gloved hands along the pitted steel door. Ever impatient, the Sage smiled at his favored son and soon to be successor.

"The doorway to our future." he stated simply before moving to the side and punching a combination of symbols into a strange device mounted in a shadowed alcove to the left of the door. _'Just like in the dream.'_

The last character pressed he stepped back and awaited. After a tense moment, nothing happened.

"Hnh, well that went well." Oro, his eldest, black haired son muttered and The Sage felt himself reluctantly nod in agreement. If all of this was for nothing...

With a squeal and a hiss of escaping compressed

air, the rusty old door descended down into the floor. Hiro sneezed as an unknown amount of time's worth of dust came floating out of the now unbarred room.

It was strange. Rows of block like instruments with glass windows mounted in them, huge whirring machines with thousands of blinking lights that seemed to pulsate at random.

As the first of their group entered the room strange smokeless torches, mounted high up in the rooms ceiling began to emit light, bathing the room in harsh white light.

But his focus was solely on the final culmination of their journey. The white slab.

Long had he dreamed of this place, with its seamless white floor and transparent walls. The end of his journey but the beginning of his people's.

"This place, its, its amazing!" the amazement in Hiro's voice was amusing, even at the age of twenty five he still held a child like wonder in his heart. It came off an endearing though and everywhere he went he easily made friends.

"This is a bridge, from this place to another. To our new home." Rikudo answered patting his son affectionately on his shoulder.

"What? I don't understand, it doesn't look like any bridge I've ever seen." the blonde man scratched his head in confusion.

"Idiot, obviously it's not a true bridge. Father is speaking metaphorically. This place is obviously going to be where we rebuild our society." Oro was angered at his brothers idiocy and his black temper was coming out. While stronger than his brother, Oro was much more temperamental and prone to jealousy, especially towards his little brother. He was angered that his father would choose his weaker brother as his heir.

"You are mistaken son, this is actually-" he never got to finish his sentence as a panting ninja approached from where the refugees were still filtering through the door.

"Master Sage! Master Sage! The metal beasts approach from the passage, there are hundreds of them!" The haggard looking man pointed back the way they had come with a shaking hand.

Vaguely the Sage could hear the tiny pattering of metal feet moving ever closer and he knew they had to act now to not let everything go to ruin. "Quickly move everyone inside! Now!"

Hearing his order, the more senior ninjas attempted to move the crowd along and slowly the bulk of the group made its way into the chamber. However it was slowly becoming apparent that they were not all going to make it. He wasn't the only one who noticed this though.

"We have to help them!" Hiro started running before he even spoke, heading towards the door at top speed, where even now the lumbering shapes of the strange enemies becoming clearer and clearer in the darkness. There really were hundreds of them, eerily marching forward in complete silence except for the patter of metal on rock as they stepped forward completely in perfect synchronization.

Hiro reached the edge of the crowd, a large amount of them still trapped outside. As he attempted to push through though he was stopped by a strong hand on his shoulder. He met the black eyes of his scowling older brother, who shook his head.

"You cannot save them all little brother, it is too late." And with that he instinctively slammed his hand down on a large red button next to the door surrounded by foreign gibberish.

"NO!" Hiro screamed as the door slammed upwards, trapping the panicking refugees in with the merciless metal men. Their screams intensified for a few fleeting moments as the silent hunters found them, pounding on the door in desperation, but soon died down and then nothing.

"You," he turned to face his brother, tears welling in his eyes. "You bastard! Murderer!" He threw himself at his brother with righteous fury. Surprised, his brother took the full blunt of his attack and was thrown to the ground. Quickly righting himself he dropped to a fighting stance.

"I do only what you have always been to weak to do." Quick as lightning he struck back, chopping at his brothers head, stomach and legs in a flurry of movement. Every move was technically perfect and executed with proper violence of action. Sweeping the shorter man's legs out from underneath him he kicked him away.

Hiro recovered in an instant, moving to rush his enemy again. The two brothers met and grappled with one another, falling to the ground as they struggled to gain dominance.

Finally the black haired man was able to position himself on top of his little brother. Cold hard hands descended and wrapped around his neck.

Hiro gasped for air and for a second he thought his brother's snarling face was the last thing he would ever see and for a second he swore his brothers eyes turned red. _'Huh, red eyes. Weird.'_

A huge force pulled the two men apart as their father arrived in a flash. "That's enough!"

Oro pushed himself away from the wall where he had landed and snarled at his brother. "I only did what I had to do!"

"We could of saved them!" Hiro clenched his fists, "You were just too much of a coward to stay and fight!" Sensing the violence growing in the air the Sage held up his hands and used his power to levitate his sons off the ground.

"I said that was ENOUGH! We have not come this far just to destroy ourselves now. I need you two to stop fighting and concentrate and work together." He let the two fall to the ground and gestured to the strange pad. "Now go and get everyone together, I must speak to them."

As the shinobi gathered, Rikudo stepped up on a nearby raised platform and waited for everyone to settle down. Raising his hands he addressed the crowd.

"Brothers and sisters, today is the day when all our hope will be restored! I have led you here from our burning world and into the light." He gestured to the slightly glowing pad. "This is our salvation! Secrets left by the ancients that will shepard us into safe pastures and a better life! A restoration of the great shinobi way of life!"

After the cheers had died down, he stepped off the platform and motioned for his sons to join him. "Divide the people into two groups, Oro you will be the leader of the first one, Hiro the second. Be sure you gather those from all walks of life to insure balance."

"What about you father?" Oro questioned but the Sage merely raised his hand.

"I will join you but first you must do this for me."

After a little bit of arguing, the assembled ninja arranged themselves into two groups, about fifty souls each and stood behind their respective leader. The air was thick with anxiety and excitement.

The stronger, more violent nin had rallied behind Oro, leaving the more reasonable peaceful group under Hiro's guidance.

All discussion ceased however as the crowd singled in on a loud banging noise emanated from the other side of the now sealed door. It was obvious that something very large and very angry was trying to get in and by the steadily increasing bulge in the door , it would not take long for it to break through.

"Oro, take your group to the platform, now!" he yelled rushing towards a series of the glass boxes.

"That idiot Hiro is right this time father, we must stay and fight. There is no logic behind moving over there and hiding." his eldest son commented but the Sage merely wave off his suggestion.

"Go now, do not ask questions, I will explain later."

At last all of Oro's ninja had managed to get on the white platform, a tight fit but all were there. Seeing this, Rikudo reached into his robes and removed a thick book which he tossed to his elder son. "That contains my complete knowledge of Chakra and it's uses, use it wisely." Following his dream's guidance he began to press the buttons below the window machine, the glass lighting up and beginning to display strange and unknown symbols. Not knowing how he knew but doing it regardless as he pressed the buttons in the correct order.

_-Welcome to VAULTEC Transitive Matter System-_

_Please enter password now..._

_Password accepted: _

_Welcome REED, JONATHON_

_Enter destination sequencing number_

_IUSAF43_

_Destination accepted Press ENTER to proceed_

_Transport in 10 seconds_

Finishing the needed ritual the Sage felt a strange electrical feeling that made the hair on his arms and legs stand on end. It was somewhat like the air right before a thunderstorm and as it went on it only continued to build.

Suddenly arcs of lightening arched between the base of the pad and the ceiling, wildly circling the uneasy people now trapped within the glowing circle.

Finally building to a crescendo, there was a blinding flash of light and then a strong smell of ozone. When their vision recovered they were shocked to see that the pad was now clear, Oro and his shinobi had vanished without a trace.

That was the last time Hiro had ever seen his brother, amidst the crackling electricity, smirk on his face and red eyes glaring out into the unknown.

"Now Hiro it is your turn!" His father gestured for him to take up position. Suffice it to say the people were reluctant to follow.

"Are you trying to get us killed?" one female ninja shouted and others voices soon joined her.

However they were interrupted by the sound of screeching metal as the beast finally made it through the door and began to awkwardly made their way inside. Those same beams of fire began to issue through the opening and once again shinobi began to drop.

Spurred to move by fear the remaining ninja and Hiro rushed to the platform, suddenly unafraid of the mysterious device their only concern escape from the death behind them.

Once all were on the Sage rushed back to the console and began the process again.

_Enter destination sequencing number_

_IUSAF43_

_Destination unable to receive transport: Receiving pad not clear_

_Enter destination sequencing number_

Red symbols flashed across the screen and Rikudo smashed the large ending button again and again but with the same result. This was not part of the dream.

_'Dammit! This wasn't supposed to happen!'_ he cursed and slammed his hands against the buttons at the machines base in frustration.

_VT113_

_Destination accepted Press ENTER to proceed_

_Transport in 10 seconds_

He had done it, somehow and as he finished the ritual he was relieved by the feeling of the electrical discharge as it came once again.

Hot light shot over his head and he ducked behind a row of desks, having temporarily forgotten about the advancing metal men.

"Dad look out!" Hiro yelled, only now with teary eyes realizing that his father didn't plan on following. "Come on you can still make it!"

However his father merely shook his head and smiled at his favorite son and tossed him the second copy of his secrets. "Use it well son."

"I love you dad." Hiro was sniffling openly now and while it wasn't a very shinobi like attitude Rikudo found it hard not to join him.

"I know you will make me proud son and always remember the will of fire that runs through your veins!" He had known from the beginning that he would never make it out of this place, but he had long ago come to terms with that. He was getting to be an old man after all and had already lived a long life.

"Dad I-" Hiro disappeared before he had a chance to say whatever he had wanted to say.

The Sage of the Six paths chuckled and turned to face his enemies.

"_Please present your security certificates now, RobCo authorizes deadly force." _

He was mildly surprised that it spoke his language and responded with the only thing that sounded appropriate as he channeled the potent energy inside him.

"Fuck you."

A/N Short, but this is only a set up. This cross over will combine Naruto, Fallout and Deathlands/Outlanders (a series of books by the combined entity known as James Axler) If you haven't read them, they're okay, if not a bit repetitive. This is going to be a much more technologically heavy current Naruto, so jutsus won't be as big of a factor.


	2. Introduction to Mr N

**Disclaimer: Author expresses lack of ownership of the copyrighted ideas portrayed in this piece of literature, written for no monetary gain.**

This is gonna feature gore, cursing and horror elements, thus the M rating.

**Shinobi of the Ashes**

**II**

"Rise, rise and find industrial gain in the glory of a new day." The old loudspeaker crackled loudly as the new work shift began. Overhead fluorescent lights flickered, burned strong and then settled somewhere in the middle, casting the squalid room in a dim light.

Naruto Uzumaki, an eighteen year old Level-3 electrical repair technician, groaned loudly and tried to stifle the squawking screeching cacophony with his stained pillow. It wasn't helping very much.

"Mr. Uzumaki it is time to get up for work." another electronic voice projected from nearby, though this one was less ineffectual at rousing him. A small electric prod was extended from a well worn metal chassis, dented and repaired multiple times in a genuine show of love.

Naruto jumped as about five thousand volts were pumped through his backside, going from not fully awake to completely alert in about as much time as it took for him to realize just what had happened.

"Oi, Mr. S!" The floating contraption's roving eye, canted to the side as if considering what was said. How many times I gotta tell ya to lay off with the shocks!"

"One hundred and twenty two times, Mr Uzumaki." the large robot floated out of range as a rather large and heavy spanner was tossed his way. "Though I have concluded through trial and error that it is the most efficient way to activate your systems for the day."

"Of course it's an effective way ta wake me up you clanking clunker! Let's see how "awake" you feel after I tie you up to the power grid and let it pulse a few hundred times through ya!"

The Type II _Mister Handy_ robotic assistant, known locally as "Mr. Stabby" bobbed up and down in excitement.

"Smashing good idea sir! I could use a pick me up, nothing like a bit of charge to get one going in the morning Mr. Uzumaki."

"Ugh, why did I ever bother to rebuild you." Naruto rubbed his eyes tiredly and checked his PIPBOY MK2's chrono feature.

"Ah shit, I'm late! Boss Iruka gonna kill me!" he shouted, already a blur as he quickly ran his hands through his bright yellow hair, pulled his oil stained orange VaultTec maintenance jumpsuit on over his underclothes, before running for the door. Bolting out he was stopped as one of Mr. Stabby's manipulator claws tapped him on the shoulder.

"You forgot your tool belt, Sir." the bot swarmed and Naruto had the sneaking suspicion that it was laughing at him. Shaking it off he grabbed the proffered object and took off running, belting it on as he careened down the hallway.

"Oh, yeah thanks Stabby, see you tonight!"

"Undoubtedly sir! Have a superb day!" The bot waited until his master had disappeared around the corner before heading back inside the squalid compartment that acted as their home. "Bloody idiot."

* * *

Iruka Umino checked the chrono mounted on his desk for the twentieth time. His office was poorly lit, much like a lot of the Vault's lower levels and the messy room was in need of a major redecorating. The main feature was his desk, completely covered in requisition forms and work orders, the endless packs of papers seemingly magically appearing. As if every time he finished one stack another would appear in its place.

Not that his assistant Naruto being late all the time helped. He could swear the boy was tardy on purpose and slowly working on driving him insane. Well so far it was working, over the past six years the boy had been a royal pain in the ass. Honestly if he wasn't so damn good at what he did, he would have had him transferred years ago to pipe repair.

Well probably not, after all he had grown attached to the little bugger. Well not little, he towered well over him. Doesn't mean he couldn't threaten the lanky bastard, light a little fire under the rad-fried idiot.

A commotion down the hall told him that his apprentice was on his way, seeming to knock and trip over everything he encountered. Iruka grimaced and rubbed his aching eyes as a shattering sound came from right outside the door, he had been storing a crate of light bulbs out there.

_'Not anymore!'_

The door exploded inward and a bouncing orange ball of energy surged in through the gap. Rushing to stand in front of his supervisors desk, Naruto snapped a poorly executed salute.

"UZUMAKI, N LEVEL-3 ELECTRICAL REPAIR TECHNICIAN REPORTING FOR DUTY SIR!"

Iruka pulled the cotton-balls out off his ears. Long ago he had learned that when it came to this fish-brain; proper hearing protection was always, always required.

"At ease!" Naruto dropped his salute and took a seat on an overturned paint bucket.

Iruka gave one of his best glares, but Naruto stared on obliviously, so after a few minutes Iruka sighed and pulled two of the papers off the top of one massive pile. Clearing his throat he read the papers before flinging them over to Naruto who fumbled, tipped and dropped them on the floor.

"Alright Naruto, listen up. I got two jobs for you this morning. First there's a pretty bad rad-roach problem in food storage and their asking that we send someone down to take care of it. As for th..." the pale shade on his subordinates face made him pause and try and restrain from smashing his head on his desk. "What?"

Naruto frowned and leaned back on his paint can, "Isn't that a job for security?" he questioned and Iruka merely shook his head in response.

"Security is too busy in the upper levels, pulling a security detail for the Overseer, so they've asked that we tighten our belts and get this done."

"But you know how much I hate, hate hate, those stupid things!" Naruto whined and stomped his feet on the ground like a small child throwing a tantrum.

Iruka stared at him incredulously for a second before remembering he who exactly he was dealing with here. "Too bad, it has to be done today and I'm waaaay too busy here."

"But.."

"ZIP!"

"Bu..!"

"SSH!"

"Why..!"

"SHUTIT!"

"Fine!"

"NOPE!"

"What?"

Iruka glared at the boy sitting across from him for a second before drawing his 10mm pistol from his belt. "Naruto..." he threatened but left the rest to imagination.

Instantly the blonde was on his feet, backing away towards the door. "Yeah, yeah, no problem boss, no problem, just gonna kill some over grown cockroaches." He reached the door and was about to flee when the "boss" stopped him.

"And Naruto next time your late..." Blam! Blam! Two shots zoomed into the door next to his underlings head, "I won't miss."

The sound of unlaced boots flat out running away was the only evidence that idiot was ever there. Iruka collapsed back down into his creaky chair and removed a bottle of moonshine, made from the finest mushrooms and machine oil available, and set it on the table.

Yep, he had a lot of work to do.

* * *

A few hours later a whistling Naruto returned, covered in squashed bug juice and spinning a rather large wrench on his finger.

Iruka, already five fingers deep in his second bottle looked up with disinterest.

"Ouuuuh look what'da ca, ca, dog dragged inn!" he causally jeered, then noticed the sorry state of his jumpsuit. "Whaadda hell happened to ya?"

"I'm not afraid of no rad-roaches any more!" Naruto beamed, all the while still spinning the gore encrusted spanner around 'n round.

Iruka gave a noncommittal grunt. "Yeah?"

Finally stopping the wrench, Naruto's smile grew to insane proportions and he pointed it at Iruka.

"Believe it!"

Briefly Iruka toyed with the idea of shooting him then and there.

_'But then I'd have to finish these jobs, so no. Still should talk to him in the future about this new "catchphrase" he has going on. Better to nip it in the bud, unlike last time." _The scarred man shivered. He still didn't what satanic pit the word "dattebayo" had managed to escape from.

The wrench began spinning again and Iruka watched it warily as it seemed seconds away from breaking free and flying at his face.

"Anyways here's the second job. The Overseer's secretary called and put in a work order. Apparently one of their doors up there is on the fritz and is stuck shut."

The wrench picked up speed.

"Listen I don't think I have to explain to you just how important it is for you to be on your best behavior but knowing you." he leaned forward and tried to put as much fire in his eyes as possible. "Be on your god damn best behavior. Or else."

The wrench stopped mid turn and spun the other way, before being tossed up into the air and caught effortlessly behind his back.

"Do you understand?"

"Ya, boss. Hey why aren't you drunk anymore?" Iruka's "top" took that moment to explode.

"GET THE FUCK OUT!" he threw one of the empty bottles at Naruto, who was once again scurrying towards the door. "AND FOR THE LOVE OF KAMI, STOP PLAYING WITH THAT FUCKING WRENCH!"

* * *

Naruto sheltered his eyes from the bright light as he entered the upper atrium. It was a whole different word up here, so different from the lower maintenance levels where he had spent most of his life. As he progressed upwards he had noticed that the walls had become less corroded and pitted and the dress of the citizens he passed became less utilitarian and more garish.

It was strange, not helped by the dirty looks he received almost every time he passed one of the upper dwellers. It didn't bother him though, people had whispered and pointed for as long as he would remember. So no big deal. However there was person he was looking forward to seeing.

Passing the security office he momentarily poke his head in and waved to Hiruzen Sarutobi. "Hey Gramps what's up?" he cheerfully goaded.

The elderly security chief smiled and waved back. "Good to see you Naruto, how have you been lately? It's been awhile since we talked last." Hearing his concern Naruto grinned and put one hand behind his head.

"Er, well old man me an' the Boss have been busy lately replacing the wiring down in Pump Control, rats have been swimming in through the pipes and chewing the wires up." The old man harumphed.

"How many times have I told you not to call me that?" he groaned but Naruto merely ignored him.

"Well see ya gramps I gotta go back to work see ya!" Hiruzen nodded and watched the young man as he disappeared.

It was such a pity.

* * *

Over ten years ago was the last time anyone had ever seen or heard the man who should have been Naruto's father. Minato Uzumaki.

The man had vanished without a trace after a bloody but ultimately failed coup de' grace against the Overseer. The rest of his collaborators had died during the massacre, but the man himself had somehow escaped. How he had done it, left the Vault, was a subject of interest for all one hundred and eighty two residents.

The treatment the boy had received after that had been horrible to say the least and more times than he care to recall he found himself putting down murder attempts and impromptu beatings, but he couldn't be there all the time for Naruto's sake. The effects of that on a 8 year old were horribly taxing.

He didn't know how the boy had managed to maintain his cheerful attitude all these years, really that was more of a miracle in and of itself than anything else.

Thankfully though the boy had matured quickly, shooting up to almost 1.7m by his fourteenth year and after that he had just kept on growing.

The old man was glad he was paired with Iruka down in maintenance. The scarred man had a good heart and even if he had a bit of a drinking problem he managed to keep Naruto in line and the limit the number of "pranks" the kid pulled. Though saying they were pranks was a bit kind, they were more like less lethal versions of landmines. Sometimes the kids prodigious mechanical mastery was more of a pain in the ass than a boon, reprogramming the non-lethal anti-riot turrets to target the color yellow, or activating the fire-suppression system in the Inuzuka home.

Regardless Naruto was an asset to the community and more than pulled his weight. Or at least dragged it behind him.

* * *

Naruto continued past the security office and headed up towards administration, the lit signs attached to the ceiling showing him the way.

With nobody around he dropped his smiling facade. He put it there in the first place for the benefit of the few people that cared about him and for the continuing ignorance of that that didn't. Sometimes it was easier to play the fool and be treated like one instead.

It's not like he was depressed or anything like that. It was just easier this way.

_'Dad...'_ He didn't know where the thought had come from but it brought back a tide of buried memories that had been submerged for good reason.

"_Papa! Papa!" his four year old self exclaimed excitedly as his father came home from yet another long day working down in the research labs. _

"_Naruto. The apartment is not clean again." Minato remarked sourly, taking off his lab coat and folding it neatly before placing it in the hamper. "It is your job to straighten the apartment while I am at the lab and I expect you to perform your duty until you begin school." Naruto's face fell at his fathers admonishment but a comforting hand on his shoulder brought his gaze back up._

_Minato had removed his glasses and Naruto once again found himself in awe of his father. He just looked so strong and handsome and he really wished he would be just like him when he grew up!_

"_My son, I am so proud of you." he ruffled his hair "I know your mother would have been too." The mention of his mother began to bring water to his eyes and he began to sniffle. Before he knew it big strong arms wrapped around him and he smelt the comforting mix of chemicals and iron. _

"_Do not cry." Minato let the embrace fall and started to the door. "If you have forgotten, today is special." _

_Naruto was confused. "Special, how?"_

"_Today is October 10, your birthday." Minato patiently explained and Naruto._

"_Oh." He followed his dad's broad shoulders as they left their room and began to head deeper into the lower levels of the vault. His father gestured for him to walk next to him._

"_Naruto I am sorry." he murmured and Naruto scrunched his eyes in confusion._

"_For what father?" However Minato continued on as if he hadn't spoken._

"_Sometimes men must do bad things in order to do good. Does that make us comparable to devils in our own right if we can't understand where the line between evil and good intentions become hazy enough to make the distinction between the two." Naruto kept silent, he didn't understand completely what his father was saying but it sounded serious._

"_Would it not be a greater evil to allow the continued existence of tyranny than to simply accept the suffering of many. Let the minority suffer to alleviate the pain of the majority. In the future you will hear things about me son, bad things. But I want you to always remember that I am doing this for you. We are here. Happy birthday son."_

_Whatever questions Naruto had were pushed away by what he saw. A pile of rusted and corroded metal lay propped up against the wall._

"_Wow! Its a M2 Mister Handy! Look, it even has the original energy cell modules!" He rushed from his dad's side to the deactivated robot. "Where did you find it dad!? Is it mine? Can I keep it!?"_

_Minato chuckled at his sons exuberance. "Iruka found it down in the recycling plant and thought you might like to have it."_

"_Someone was throwing this away? They must've been crazy!" Naruto continued to happily tinker away and his father smiled, whatever had been troubling him for the moment forgotten._

Naruto shook off the old memory and checked his PIPBOY for the time. It was almost thirteen hundred and only six more hours till curfew and the night cycle began. He was looking forward to going to the mess hall after his shift ended. Maybe some of his friends would be there.

He was so lost in thought that he didn't bother to watch where he was going and before he knew it had bumped into someone, hard enough to send them both to the ground. Recovering quickly he struggled back up.

"Er sorry, I wasn't looking where I was going...oh its just you." He finally recognized the person he had knocked over. Hinata Hyuga. Daughter of Hiashi Hyuga. The Overseer.

The girl's face had turned an interesting shade of red and only deepened when he offered her his hand to help her up. One she was up.

"Th-th-thank you." she stuttered, nervously playing with her heavy jackets draw strings.

"Yeah, yeah, no problem." He waved it off and then started walking again, passing the strange glowing white tiles of the grand hall and continuing towards the Overseer's office. The entire time he could feel Hinata's strange pale eyes digging into his back. Grinning mischievously he stopped and spun around.

With a squeak his stalker jumped and flitted into a nearby door. After a few seconds her eyes peeked back around the corner. Naruto chuckled to himself and turned back.

"Weird girl."

Finally, he found himself at the Overseer's office. He pressed the intercom next to the door and waited to be buzzed in. After a few seconds the heavy door unlocked and he entered.

As he passed the stuck up looking secretary she graced him with a menacing snarl. "Hurry up traitor, you're late already."

"Yes, ma'am." he tried his best to sound full of humility but he couldn't stop a little bit of anger from leaking out.

"Watch your tone scum! Go fix that door and get out, frankly I don't know why the Overseer hasn't had you killed." Naruto just ignored the bitch and walked over to the aforementioned broken door.

Pulling off the access panel next to the stuck door, Naruto flipped the breaker off, waited about five seconds and then turned it back on.

The door whooshed open and he muttered under his breath. "Idiots."

"Is there a problem Uzumaki?" Naruto felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up as the flat emotionless voice addressed him. Placing his tools back in their places he turned slowly around and faced the person addressing him.

"No sir. The door is fixed now." Pale white eyes seared him with their intensity, but unlike the lingering gaze earlier this one was filled with contempt and hate.

Overseer Hiashi Hyuga was a powerful looking man, pale skin, long dark black hair and the same strange pupil-less eyes shared by all of his family. The same family that had been ruling as Overseer, son after father for as long as anyone could remember. "You may leave now."

_There he was, eight years old, sitting in his room working on the Mister Handy's repulsor lift. His father had helped him paint a yellow smiley face on the side of the bot's chassis because he decided it needed more personality. _

_All of a sudden the sound of multiple gunshots and explosions startled him. Scurrying under his bed, he waited until the last few pot shots died off before slowly getting out from his hiding place. Warily he made his way to the door. The attack had sounded like it had come from the upper levels which was near his father's laboratory. _

_Daddy, he thought worriedly and moved to door. However the screeching sound of a panel being pried off and a door hacked stopped him. Before long the door opened on his own and a pale, cold eyed man walked in, trailed by two intimidating armored guards. _

_The bad man looked uncaring at his eight year old self and then threw his hand forward, sending the child to the floor. When he finally spoke his voice was cold as ice._

"_Where is your father?"_

_'As if I need your fucking permission.'_ Naruto wanted to say as the painful memory ended but instead just picked up the last of his tools and left.

* * *

Sometime later he found himself back in Iruka's office. There had been nothing else to do so the two had just sat around and shot the shit. Even though the paperwork might be expansive, there was a reason there was so much of it.

"What about that Hyuga girl who's always following you around? She's pretty cute."

"Yah, but here's the three reasons. One, her fucking father. Two, she's probably fat or something, don't think I've ever seen her without her jacket." he held up another finger, "And Three." he held his breath until he turn red and then fell off his bucket.

Iruka laughed uproariously at the excellent impression of Hinata's famous fainting spells.

"Yah, yah, I guess your right. But you gotta find a girl soon here man, people are starting to "talk." He threw up some air quotes to make it obvious exactly what people were "talking" about.

"Screw you boss! Who's the thirty five year old, whose last date coincided with the last time I've seen Neji Hyuga not walking around like he has a stick up his ass?"

"Eh go fuck yourself."

"You wish." Iruka flipped him the bird and then stood and stretched, popping and cracking his back in a annoying way.

"Eh, we're done for today, so get the fuck out and go home."

Excited with the prospect of freedom Naruto raced to get home.

"Oi, oi, idiot! Don't be late tomorrow or I'll gut ya!"

"Sure, sure whatever."

Iruka sighed as he was left alone again. Damn kid.

But he was right about one thing, it had been way to long since he got laid.

Turning his Rolo-dex to "A" and punched the correct extension into his work phone. Ringing for a few seconds the person on the other side picked up.

With a smile he made his proposition "Hey Anko, it's me Iruka, wha'cha doing tonight?"

A/N Introduction to the stage world that this one will be taking place in. The setting will be Colorado, didn't want to completely just shadow the lone wanderer or courier. I think due to Norado colorado would of taken a crap load of nukes so that means in the Fallout/Deathlands world plenty of mutants. The story may makes its way down to Vegas or even DC cuz remember this is Fallout with Transmats so anythings possible really. There will be some action next chapter and bring out some more characters. I decided to use the original characters personality traits, so expect the shy Hinata, quiet Shino and bat-shit crazy sakura.

OH and thanks RoyalTwinFangs for da review. I appreciate it.


	3. Secrets Revealed and a Murder Committed

**Disclaimer: Author expresses lack of ownership of the copyrighted ideas portrayed in this piece of literature, written for no monetary gain.**

This is gonna feature gore, cursing and horror elements, thus the M rating.

**Shinobi of the Ashes**

**III**

Naruto sat down in the cafeteria and started to pick at his meal. It was Instamash and BlamCo mac n cheese again. He wished the cook would find some more Sugerbombs or hell he'd even take Pork'n'beans. No joke best thing he'd ever eaten had been a Box of Noodles. Ramen it had been called.

Food of the gods! Unfortunately he hadn't been able to find any since then.

The meat part was probably mole-rat, the damn things could always be found tunneling down in the lower levels. It wasn't particularly bad tasting but if you've eaten something for pretty much the entirety of your life it tends to get annoying.

"Is there anyone sitting here." somebody asked and Naruto shook his head, not exactly paying attention. Whoever it was sat down across from him and they continued on like that in silence for a period of time.

"Your name is Naruto right?" A deep voice invaded his train of thought and when he replied he made sure it was with as much disinterest as humanly possible.

"Sure."

"You don't sound very sure." The man verbally parried; annoyed Naruto prepared to tell his mystery guest to kindly "sit 'n spin" but in not so colloquially. Well he would of if he hadn't noticed just who was doing the talking.

_'Ah crap, not good.' _A smooth white mask covered the person's entire face, the only identifying marks being what looked like a crow beak and feathers painted on the "face" portion. Which could only mean his mystery guest was a member of the ANBU.

ANBU, the overseer's personal guards, a half dozen in total, handpicked from the ranks of the security officers for their loyalty and dedication. Fitted with the best gear and armor available they fell under the direct command of the Overseer and would deal out his brand of justice whenever they were called upon to do so.

Hopefully this wasn't one of those times.

He hadn't had good run-ins with these guys before and Naruto knew that if the shit should hit the fan he couldn't go running to Hiruzen about it.

"I'm pretty positive I know my own name." he deadpanned hoping to avoid causing trouble with this guy.

"Then you must be who I was looking for!" He sweat dropped at the stupid comeback and for some reason could of sworn that he was smiling under that mask.

There was an awkward silence between the two that lasted way beyond any since of comfort. It was during this time that he realized that the mystery agent hadn't been looking him during the conversation. Instead his attention was focused on some kinda little orange book that he read lazily. If that was possible.

Finally he had just about enough and gathered up his tray, preparing to leave. However when he tried to get up there was suddenly a strong hand pushing him back into his seat.

"I knew your father." The masked man stated calmly as if the conversation had naturally led to the point, not something out of the blue. He now looking (he thought) directly at him, somehow making his little book disappear as if it had never existed. Naruto waited on the man to continue, his interest piqued. "He was a good man, dedicated to doing what was right no matter what. He used to be ANBU you know, back before you were born. He was one of the best; but he just couldn't be part of it anymore."

Naruto's mind raced a mile a minute as he tried to keep up with what he was being told. His father an ANBU? Questions popped up all over the place, but they only really mattered if it was all true. He decided to push the issue.

"You're lying! My father would of never been with ANBU! He stood for everything they, no,you stood for, there's no way he would of betrayed belief." He realized that he probably shouldn't be pissing this guy off but he was a little off balance right now.

"Yo, kid listen." Even though he sounded care-free, Naruto could tell that he was deathly serious. "I knew your old man because I was his replacement. The reason he tried to overthrow Hiashi, do you know?" Naruto shook his head and the guy shrugged. "Figured not, I don't think anyone besides the Overseer, the ANBU and your old man really ever knew the truth." There was a pause.

"This Vault is dying." He stated it like it was nothing out of the ordinary but Naruto's slack jawed look said it all.

"What _exactly_ do you mean by that?"

The strangers head just barely moved, but Naruto guessed he was rolling his eyes.

"Shikaku Nara came to us over ten years ago and told us that the output levels of the Vault's primary reactor were decreasing at an exponential rate. He then said it was possible that the resulting imbalance could result in critical overload."

Naruto frowned and shook his head a blank look coming over his face as his natural scientifically geared mind went to work. "No, fluctuating output levels are indicative of a deteriorating containment field. It wouldn't cause an overload instead result in discontinuous operations." The other man waved off his explanation.

"Ya, ya, your dad said something similar in egghead speak, but explosion _or_ shutdown; it won't change the end result. In a couple months this place is gonna shut down. No more air, no more food, no more safe water. Game over." The masked man paused for a second, held a too fingers to his head and pulled the trigger. "Bang."

"Why hasn't anything been done! If they knew that the reactor was gonna shut down..." Naruto trailed off.

"Think kid, the Hyugas have been seated in the overseer's chair for as long as everyone can remember. He couldn't stand the thought of any change in the distribution of power. However your father realized that this was madness so he gathered those with similar idealizations. The fought and they lost, your father disappeared with a few others and as you know those left behind were, uh, "put down"."

"Wait I thought only my father survived?" the blonde questioned ignoring the weirdo's obviously inappropriate use of air quotes.

"Man, you should know by know that people only know what Overseer wants you to know, there are secrets in this place that got forgot even by the people who swore to em'."

"Like what?" The other man just shrugged, obviously he wasn't going to say else. Naruto huffed at his silence and continued.

"So, okay." He shook his head, "Well since you're so sympathetic to the plight of us plebes, then why didn't you side with my father and the other revolutionaries when you had the chance. And more importantly, why the hell are you telling me all this now?"

The man shifted so that his mask was looking away from Naruto and when he spoke it sounded as if he was far away, "We all did what we had to do, some of us had to stay behind." He turned back to him. "I promised your father, one way or another, I'd look out for you. I think I've done a pretty good job ne?"

"Yeah, yeah, sure you have. But again, why are you telling me all this now?" Naruto was trying to keep his cool but it was proving to be a challenge. This guy was either really stupid or his this childish attitude was all just an act. A damn good one.

" 'Cause, I don't wanna do it anymore." He replied cheerfully. Naruto was shocked at his blunt confession.

"Just what the hell is that supposed to mean? You go all this time supposedly keeping me safe, good job by the way, and now your leaving?" he demanded but his so called "protector" had already gotten up and made it to the door, where he paused and pulled out his book.

"Because I'm bored of it and you're plenty old enough to look out for yourself. As for doing a good job, you're alive with all four limbs right?" Naruto couldn't even think of something to say back to that.

"So I guess see ya' round kid!" he waved absently over his shoulder, his nose once again stuck in his book. Startled at his sudden departure/getaway, Naruto raised his voice in protest. To demand more answers but all that came out was,

"Wait! I didn't even learn your name!" The man was already gone from sight but he heard him from outside although he already sounded like he was miles away.

"Kakashi." What a stupid name, though somehow Naruto had expected that. For the moment dismissing childishly petulant ANBU and stupid names he concentrated on sorting out all the information he had just learned.

While unexpected, the revelations still gave him a lot to think about. Actually the whole thing was filling his mind with annoyingly unanswered questions. Questions he probably wouldn't have the answers to anytime soon. Without thinking he raised the fork that he had been clutching the whole time and popped it into his mouth.

His InstaMash had gone cold.

About an hour later Naruto found himself in yet another awkward and potentially dangerous situation. Faced with four armed and incredibly pissed off security guards, backed into a corner and in danger of getting his face ripped off.

It all started about fifteen minutes ago.

He had been sitting in the cafeteria contemplating his cold dinner when a girl had walked in. That in itself was strange, as usual he got let off work to eat well after everyone else had come and gone, so just seeing someone else was strange in and of itself. She was pretty but not what Iruka would call hot, to bookish and not enough curves. But she had something else that caught his attention just made him look. That other thing was, well...

Okay, her hair was fucking pink. Not red, Pink. With a capital P. What guy wouldn't look at a spectacle like that.

He vaguely recalled seeing her around before, he even thought that she had been in his class group back in school, but he didn't remember someone with hair like that weird of a color and he for sure as hell couldn't remember her name.

In a place like the Vault it was strange to find someone that you didn't know, or at least recognize.

_'Especially someone with hair like a gob of bubble gum.'_

As she entered, she met his gaze, gave a polite nod then continued on her way, all but oblivious to his presence. Her reason for visiting the mess hall was evident as she had walked over to the automated food dispenser by the far wall, obviously she was looking for a late snack. She looked over it for a second, noting what was available and what was out of stock (which was most everything) then made her selection. After a second of nothing happen she pressed the button, this time with a little more anger.

Naruto watched with curiosity as she pounded on the stubborn machine and eventually he decided that she had struggled enough.

"Here let me me try." she jumped up startled when he spoke up behind her, strange but not unexpected. What he wasn't expecting though was the clean right hook to his chin. Going down in a heap he got a bad feeling that this woman was crazy. Rubbing his chin he looked up at her, understandably pissed.

"What the fuck was that for?"

She got a look on her face that suggested that she was sorry, but damn if she'll ever admit it.

"You're not supposed to go sneaking up on people! What the fuck did you expect?" Turning her back on him she signaled the conversation was over. Maybe he'd have to reevaluate his opinion of this woman. She cursed under her breath as she kept mashing different buttons.

"You know I was going to help you with that, but seeing how much of a bitch you are..." he let the implications hang, though it was pretty obvious what he was going for.

"Well then I guess fuck you." she sneered, not even turning around. They stood there for a little while before he sighed and moved to the machines access panel, quickly and expertly popping the hood and getting to work. With a few seconds he assessed and corrected the problem, a popped fuse which he replaced with a spare off his belt.

Immediately the sound of a box of Mac 'n Cheese falling out of a dispenser was heard and the girl snatched it up hungrily.

"Well I guess your not useless after all." she grumbled, almost as if disappointed by his success. Seeing that she wasn't totally pissed he took the opportunity to stick out his hand.

"Naruto Uzumaki, Electrical Technician." She eyed his proffered hand like it was covered in some form of leprosy, before manners beat out snobbishness and her hand lightly clutched his.

"Sakura Haruno, Medical." She let go and he let his hand fall back to his side. She nervously looked around, "Well thanks for the food I guess."

"Wait!" he reached out and grabbed her hand. Later he would look back on this particular moment and question his overall mental health at the time. It's not like he was that interested in her. Maybe it was because he felt that she owed him something for fixing the machine or maybe because he was curious to how her hair got so damn pink. Or maybe he really just wanted to connect with someone his own age. In the end though regardless of reasons the effects were the same.

Predictably she tried to punch him again, but he had expected as much and blocked with a raised forearm, her punch skidding harmlessly of his heavy jacket. She made a second attempt after that, this time clawing at his face with an open palm. Not particular wanting to be mauled he grabbed her arm and then the other. Her scratching apparatuses secured he pushed forward, trying to throw her away and put some distance between himself and the crazed banshee. It seemed though that his luck would never improve when he felt inexplicably their feet tangle and his balance began to tip as she pulled against his grip. They toppled together, landing in a mess of limbs and neon colors, that to someone who had witnessed the event in it's entirety it would be seen as completely innocent. However if someone was to walk in at just the right moment...

For the third time that day Naruto found himself on the receiving end of a Hyuga's stare.

This time the winner was Neji Hyuga, dressed up in his security armor and flanked by three of his cronies.

"Sakura. What is this? Why are you attempting to copulate with this turncoat bastard?" Naruto had never liked the Overseer's nephew, he had, in his opinion, a rather stupid way of speaking. Plus, given all the times that he had been tormented by the older boy all throughout his life, yeah didn't like him one bit.

Sakura wasted no time in pushing him away and trying to explain what just exactly had happened and how it wasn't what it looked like. No matter how much it looked it.

"Neji, it's not what it looks like I swear! He" she pointed at Naruto, who in turn pointed at himself "was fixing the vending machine for me, then I tripped and pulled him down with me! I swear!" Naruto was actually taken aback by just how scared the girl sounded, nobody should be living that much in fear of anything. His dislike of the pale eyed bastard increased dramatically.

"I don't want to hear your foolish excuses. You are fated to belong to me! It is simple as that. Now go, I will deal with you later." The pure terror that came over Sakura's face at that moment made him feel that this wasn't the first time she had been "dealt" with. Bowing stiffly she made her way quickly out of the room.

With the woman now gone, Neji's hate filled eyes focused back on Naruto. "You traitor are fated to be cast out just like your weak father. You assaulted my property, which gives me the right to put you down like the dog you are!" He spoke calmly, completely monotone, gratingly so.

"You can't own somebody like a gun! Everyone has the right to decide what they're gonna do with their life! And no stupid predestination espousing idiot can take that away!" the electrician raved, balling up his hands. He was this close to beating this asshole into a coma.

"How dare you speak to me like that whelp. I am a Hyuga, we have decided the fates of those we have ruled for as long as there has been a Vault. When our ancestors came here from the ancient land, we were given what was owed us. Our power...oooooopf!"

No matter how much armor someone was wearing, a full powered kick to the solar plexus with heavy boots was gonna at least make them stumble. Neji was wearing just the right amount, sending him into the food dispenser which bounced him right back onto the floor where he landed in a sprawled heap.

"Hyuga my ass, you're nothing more than a overblown windbag with pretensions of grandeur, believe it."

However his enthusiasm was perhaps premature as Neji, not suffering from anything worse than getting the wind knocked out of him. He quickly recovered, him and his friends wasting no time in surrounding the blonde haired man.

And that's how he found himself in his current situation.

Neji turned to his lackeys.

"You men, make sure no one enters, I will deal with this tunnel rat myself." The guards exchanged quick glances then moved to comply, blocking the commissary's entrance. Neji meanwhile pulled his baton and with a flick of his wrist extended it to its full length.

"Thanks to your treachery I have the perfect excuse to finish what my father should of all those years ago! Fate will not be denied." He swung his truncheon quickly, attempting to clip Naruto upside the head.

Now the blonde knew that one hit to the temple would be lights out, so he brought his hands up and backed away, the balled end of the club passing by at a hairs width. The return strike came just as quickly though and this time he failed to dodge. The club slammed painfully into his ribs and he jumped away instinctively guarding his right side.

He needed a weapon. He was outmatched and didn't have enough experience with hand to hand to tip the balance in his favor without one. Now where or where could he find one then?

_'Uh, tool-belt, duh.'_ Sarcasm aside, he grabbed the first thing that his hand came into contact with, withdrawing the wrench that he had squished the rad-roaches earlier with. Thusly armed he turned to face his opponent.

"Come on you piece of shit! Lets see if you can back up those pretty words with some pretty action!" for added effect he spun the wrench around his finger and gave Neji one his best "Go fuck off and die" smiles.

"Cowardly peasant, why can't you just accept your fate and die!" Neji snarled, the veins beside his eyes slowly beginning to pulse.

_'What the hell?'_ "Hey Neji, I think you should take it easy. Looks like your stroking out, I guess all that inbreeding has finally gotten to you." There wasn't reply, only a low growl, but Naruto figured he had gotten the point.

Neji's strikes slowly became precise, faster and Naruto was finding it harder and harder to avoid the flying blows. Already he had multiple bruises on his arms and legs from blocking. He swung with his spanner, but next to Neji his attacks seemed slow and cumbersome, like he was moving in water. There was also something else, something he couldn't quite explain. It felt like the air was becoming electric, he could feel his arms beginning to form goosebumps as the hair on his neck began to stand on end. When he looked at Neji the feeling only became even stronger. Meanwhile he continually fell behind Neji's strikes, finally not being able to even block, merely attempting to direct the blows to less vital areas.

"You can't even hit me, I'm way out of your class traitor! Destined royalty while you are nothing more than a loser, losing to everything and finally losing your life." Neji landed one particularly nasty strike on Naruto's knee, causing the electrician to bend and fall, his impromptu weapon clanking as it hit the ground. Neji, knowing that his opponent was all but defeated grabbed Naruto by the hair and dragged the prone blonde over to the wall.

With surprising strength he effortlessly lifted the larger mans entire body off the ground, crushing him against the concrete wall. In his hand the extended baton pressed deeply into Naruto's neck, cutting off his flow of oxygen. "Now you will die and what was destined to happen then will happen now. Though honestly" he leaned closer to the dying mans face. "I am just happy to be the one to do it."

Naruto tried to say something but with his windpipe being crushed it just came out as sort of a dry croak. Neji curious about this cowards final words and eager to gloat on their ineffectiveness, eased up the pressure a little bit. Gasping, Naruto gave him a pained smirk.

"You always were a fucking idiot." Blam! Blam!, the sound of a pick-pocketed 10mm pistol discharging twice was a sudden outburst that the Hyuga did not expect. Naruto had grabbed it from his belt while Neji was busy monologing and since all children are taught the basics of firearm operation in school, he had managed to turn its against its owner with spectacular results.

The surprise and anger on Neji's face really was priceless. Naruto pushed away the body, noticing how the 10mm slugs had punched right through the armored jumpsuit that all the guards wore.

Good to know.

It took a full second to realize exactly what he had just done. He had killed someone. Something that before now he had never even considered would ever be part of his life. Sure he had imagined strangling the Overseer with his own intestines but there was a big difference between childish fantasies of revenge and the actual weight of a gun in your hand as you stood over a corpse that you created.

"Ooof." Not paying attention, he had failed to notice the guard sneaking up behind him and the subsequent blow to the back of the head that and sent him into unconsciousness. As he collapsed the guards rushed to stem the flow of blood out of Neji's ruined chest, but the large puddle on the ground said that his fate was already decided.

Naruto regained consciousness and immediately noticed he was taller. No, that wasn't quite right, more like he was standing taller. Obviously it had something to do with the chains currently painfully digging into his forearms. They were pulled tight, suspending him from the sealing like a stuck mole-rat waiting to be bled.

_'Well that's a pleasant thought.'_

In addition, as if he just wasn't suffering enough humiliation, he had been stripped naked. Oh and from the shooting pains cropping up all over his slowly waking body, he had had the pleasure of being severely beaten. Briefly he considered struggling, but in his current condition there really wasn't much he could do.

The sound of quietly approaching steps announced the approach of one of his tormenters and he squinted his eyes trying to get past the glare from the ceiling mounted spotlight. When his visitor was fully revealed though he couldn't help but groan at the seemingly injustice of the world. Of course he would be in charge, it was his job.

The cold monotone voice came completely expected if not appreciated. "Naruto Uzumaki. You stand accused of the murder of Neji Hyuga. As it was clearly you, I have decided to skip any sort of pedantic trial and simply pronounce the verdict. Which is obviously..." the corners of the Overseer's mouth quirked in a rare predatory smile.

"Death."

A/N No this is not confirmation of a NarutoxSakura pairing so please direct your lynch mobs somewhere else.

Thank you.

But it maaaay be.

Yes I know that was kind of forced the whole Neji snaps thing but you have to remember that he's hated Naruto ever since his dad tried to off Hiashi, but couldn't touch him because Hiruzen had his back. Plus he's an asshole. Yah you can probably guess he's not gonna be with Hinata, you know the whole sorry I murdered your cousin thing.

Yeah and Kakashi, um, yeah. 'Nough said.

Thanks to Kuro Ryoushi and Shadowninja123 for their reviews. I'll try to make it not "suck" ;)

PM


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